Welcome to summer! Know that I said that before, but this time it is official! We are now in the summer season. It is great to say that, even though we seemed to have had more summer type days this year than I can remember for the last 3-4 years.

Summer also means that we are going back to our half hour show. We have been able to have an hour long program because of the support of advertisers. We are looking at returning to an hour long program in the fall, starting in September. We hope to have the details worked out on that soon!

In the meantime, we hope you continue to watch the program, because we will continue to bring you topical and fresh garden information every week!

This week we featured...

Common Weeds

We all love plants, but there is one plant that we could all do without and that is the common weed! Right now there are many weeds that are popping up in the garden so we thought we would stop by and visit with Jan McNeilan, retired OSU Extension agent, to get the names of some of the ones you would be seeing in your garden right now. The first thing we noticed is the amount of geranium type weeds in the garden. Jan pulled one out called ‘stinky robert’. It is very easy to pull out of the garden. For Jan, it usually grows in areas that are not around the margins of her garden and yard. The real problem weed for Jan is the potentilla. There is an ornamental shrub that you can have in your garden called potentilla, but this one is a weed and according to some studies is an indicator plant for infertile soils. It is very tough to pull unless the soil is moist. The ‘willow herb’, or ‘fire weed’ was next. Some people like this plant for the beautiful flower it produces, but it should be pulled since it can spread rapidly once it goes to seed. The next weed was one that made William giggle, nipplewort. It is also called ‘trail plant’. This plant grows very tall and so it is easy to see in the garden and it is very easy to pull. Once again, get it before it seeds! The next weed has a little history to it; it is called ‘catch weed’ or ‘bedstraw’. The name ‘catch weed’ is because it has tiny barbs so it can catch on everything (that is how it spreads) and ‘bedstraw’ comes from the fact that outdoor enthusiasts and pioneers would use the prolific weed as a cushion or mattress when sleeping. If you are interested in more gardening information and get tips on what you can be doing in your garden, then check out the OSU Extension website.

Evapotranspiration

I know it sounds like a long, made-up, word, but evapotranspiration is a real topic and an important one when you are talking about the health of your landscape and saving water. This week we met up with Jim Meierotto from the Regional Water Providers Consortium to learn what the term means! Every plant, and even the soil, in your yard loses moisture due to evaporation and transpiration. Evaporation can happen due to the heat of the summer day. Transpiration is just the normal ‘sweating’ and ‘breathing’ of your plants. Either way your plants are losing water everyday. It is how we replace that water where we could have problems. Jim gave us a demonstration of what that means. First he had a jar filled half way with water. This is your lawn and represents how much water it takes for it to be healthy. He poured out some of the water and that represented the amount to water lost to evapotranspiration. Now when you water you want to put back close to the same amount of water that the lawn has lost, but sometime we over water. Jim then poured in extra water to overflowing, showing how when we over water it just is wasted. Some tips to avoid that? Start by setting out some measuring cups (yellow ones can be picked up from the Regional Water Providers Consortium). Run your sprinklers until you have 1 inch of water in the cups. Take the amount of time it took to fill the cup and divide that out over the week. That is how much you have to water to get 1 inch per week on your lawn

What happens if the weather gets hot or there is rain forecasted for our area? Go to the RWPC website and check out the weekly water number. This will tell you whether you need to water more or less than your 1 inch measurement. With a little bit of effort on your part at the beginning, your can save money and energy in the long run!

Bonsai Planting

Bonsai is a wonderful art. Each plant becomes a microcosm of a miniature landscape. It can become a hobby that can consume you if you get bitten by the ‘bonsai’ bug. It can also be very intimidating for the beginner. To help people understand how easy it can be we stopped by Tsugawa’s Nursery (360-225-8750) to get some tips from Brian about how to get started and what tools were involved. Tsugawa’s hold classes on a regular basis and Brian was willing to shorten up his talk for our show. First he showed us a plant that he was going to trim and move to a new, bigger home in a larger pot. If it is an established plant you may want to trim the foliage, especially if it has gotten a little long over the winter. His description of ‘creating clouds’ was perfect for what he was trying to accomplish. Opening the structure of the plant to expose the branching was wonderful. He was told many years ago that you should be able to imagine a butterfly moving between the ‘clouds’. After a few minutes he was done and it was a dramatic change. Next he showed us how to prune the roots in preparation for the move to a bigger container. Brian used a root hook and a scissors to cut a massive amount of the root ball off. By cutting, combing and thinning the roots he insured that the plant could stay in the new pot for the next 3-5 years without too much stress. Brian also showed us how to position the plant in its new home and explained how the support wires help secure the plant while it grows. If you have any questions on how to get started in this fascinating hobby stop by Tsugawa’s and check with their experts for some easy to understand instruction!

Speaking of bonsai, this weekend the Portland Nursery location on Division is having their big bonsai event. On Saturday, June 22nd from 10am to 3pm you can stop by and learn about bonsai from the bonsai society and even enter your own bonsai for prizes.

Peninsula Park Celebration

There is a big birthday party coming up and everyone is invited. Peninsula Park in north Portland has reached the 100 year mark and they want everyone to stop by this coming Thursday. From 11am to 11pm, the Portland Parks and Recreation people are planning a full day of family fun! Peninsula Park is one of the oldest in the parks system and had the first rose garden and community center in the city. The Rose Garden is a signature for the park. Earlier this year we met with Pat Frobes about the replanting of the garden that they were doing. Dozens of volunteers replanted the entire floor of the sunken gardens with 3100 donated roses. These bare root roses came from Baileys, Stars and Weeks roses. They were just sticks before, but now they are starting to bloom and will be putting on a show by the 27th!

Phil Lewis for Portland Parks and Recreation joined us to tell us about other events happening on the 27th including arts and crafts, a free lunch for kids at noon, a bouncy house, a rock climbing wall, circus performances and a free showing of ‘Madagascar 3’ in the evening. These events are not only celebrating the anniversary of the park, but are also kicking off the ‘Summer Free for All’ program that the parks department runs at various areas around the city. If you are looking for something to do with the family, stop by and have a good time and check out the new rose garden. For complete details check out The Peninsula Park Centennial and Summer Free for All Kickoff Celebration!

ANLD Garden Tour

We very seldom visit private gardens, well, because they are private and hard for our viewers to see in normal circumstances, but every once in a while we get an invite to promote a garden tour where people can see some spectacular gardens! The ANLD Designers Garden Tour in one of those tours. The Association of Northwest Landscape Designers showcases some of the best design work from landscape designers in our area. The tour takes place today, June 22, from 10-4. People can view 7 professionally designed private gardens on Portland's west side. Tickets are $20 and can be purchased through the website www.anld.com and select Garden Centers and will contain addresses and directions on each ticket. Proceeds benefit the ANLD scholarship fund for budding landscape designers at PCC and CCC.

To get a preview of the tour we met up with Lori Scott and Amy Whitworth at one of the homes on the tour. Lori actually did the design for this home and it was spectacular! She had to deal with a ton of issues with this landscape including a severe slope and a water runoff problem. The back garden is especially wonderful with privacy enhancing pergolas, an outdoor fire pit and a soothing water feature. There is also a small vegetable garden and lots of cool and unique art. Lori dealt with the slope problem in the side yard by building a large natural stone retaining wall. This allowed the homeowner to still have a flat lawn for their dogs and an additional area to entertain guests. It also created a nice garden area that showcases the home from the street. Other homes on the tour are just as great. Vern Nelson’s edible garden is on the tour, there is also a fantastic foliage garden, and one that features an outdoor kitchen and fireplace. If you would like to see these homes, be sure to check out the ANLD website for tickets and detailed information.

Hot Salvias

As we have mentioned before, late spring and summer are the time for Salvias. To get a look at some of the best salvias of this season we stopped by Garden Fever (503-287-3200) in NE Portland and met up with Lori Vollmer. Garden Fever has quite a selection of salvias to choose from and there is one for just about every garden! These plants are very vivid in the garden and are great for visiting wildlife including hummingbirds! Some of the varieties can be touchy and some should only be considered annuals, while others are hardy for our area. The first one we looked at was Salvia Chiapensis, a hot pick number that is not at all hardy for our area. Still it produces great flowers all season long. This was next to Salvia ‘Sensation Deep Rose’, which is very hardy for our area. One of the tips for getting the most out of your hardy salvias is to not be too tidy. Don’t clean them up or cut them back until the threat of frost has completely disappeared. Salvia patents ‘Cobalt’ was next and can come back year after year if you take care of it and place it in an area with a little protection. There are also more colors to choose from in the last few years, like the white ‘Sally G. Vanilla’ and the bright red ‘Flame’. There are also taller varieties like the ‘Indigo Spires’ which gets around 3-4 feet tall in a sunny and warm location near a south facing wall. Finally we took a look at ‘Hot Lips’. This one has been very popular the last few years. It has deep red flowers that have a white background which gives it the look of red lips! If you are looking for a plant that seems to keep blooming all summer long then salvia is the plant or you. Check out the selection at your local garden center or stop by and see our friends at Garden Fever.

Orchard Outdoor Décor

The summer is here and it is time to entertain outside. If you just have a patio set and a BBQ, with just a few additions you can make your deck or patio a comfortable and welcoming entertainment area. We stopped by the new Orchard Supply Hardware (503-469-0935) at their Peterkort location in Beaverton to chat with Jeana about some ideas that she had for creating this wonderful space. First of all we talked about comfort. If your guests are comfortable then the festivities will go smoother. Starting with an umbrella! Protecting your guests from the hot sun or light mist is very important. The correct umbrella will also enhance your existing patio set. Then we moved down to lights. If you can provide a soft light then you can extend everyone’s time outside. They had some battery operated lanterns that were on timers so they would turn on and off on their own so you can save batteries. If you have a mosquito problem Jeana recommended that you use a tiki type torch with a citronella fuel to keep the bugs away. William noticed another great idea with these torches. They were placed in a bucket of sand, this would be great if you didn’t have yard to drive the stake into. The bucket (or pot) full of sand would keep your lantern upright! William then noticed the plant on the table. Adding a small pot of flowers to the table can bring a bright spot of color to your decorating and it doesn’t need to cost a lot of money. Just take one of your small containers from your yard. Jeana pointed out the other containers of flowers around the table including a hanging basket which was just in a plant stand and a planter full of herbs, great to have right next to the grill for the chef in the family. Another way to make your guests comfortable is to provide pillows and cushions. Finally we moved to the table top and the dishes. Finding a decorative and bright pattern for your dishes will make any outdoor meal special. Also we added cloth napkins. Paper napkins can say ‘camping’, cloth napkins can be a ‘classy’ addition to the table. If you are looking for ideas for outdoor entertaining, stop by the 2 new locations of Orchard Supply Hardware in Beaverton and Tigard.

Standard TV Induction Cooktops

Things are heating up in the kitchen! This week we stopped by Standard TV and Appliance (503-619-0500) to learn about the newest in cook tops. Edie introduced us to the induction cook tops. These burners are actually magnets that place all the energy at the base of the pan and so none of it is wasted heating the air around the pan. It was really freaky when Judy actually touched the stovetop near the pan while it was in a full boil! The whole crew had to touch it! It showed that all the energy was just going to cooking the food and none to heating the unused surface. Edie also showed us how responsive the burner was. She turned the heat down and it went from a full boil to a simmer in just a few seconds! To see these and the newest in other appliances, stop by Standard TV and Appliance.

Paulee Restaurant Garden